Career Profile: Curator	Home	Español	Activity
		Informal perspective of what an occupation might be like.

What I Do: Modern art – people either love it or hate it! As the curator of contemporary painting at a major American art gallery, I love modern art. I purchase the paintings on display at our gallery, often traveling throughout the country to view potential acquisitions. I organize special exhibits and write the catalogs that describe them. I give lectures about our collection and about modern art in general, and I sometimes publish articles in art magazines. Finally, I oversee the care and handling of all the paintings the gallery owns and keep detailed, computerized records on each one.

Best and Hardest Parts of My Job: I have a dream job! First of all, I enjoy my environment. Who wouldn’t like being surrounded by paintings they love? I get to meet new artists and learn about their work, and I also get to introduce them to the public by exhibiting their paintings. I enjoy writing and lecturing, too. The hardest part of my job is working within a tight budget. In order to purchase new paintings, a gallery must have substantial funding. Sometimes we can’t afford to buy the works that I would like to, and that is always disappointing.  

How I Got Started: Becoming a curator requires quite a bit of training and education, and competition for jobs is very intense. I earned a Ph.D. in art history, with a specialization in modern art. I also had an internship at a museum where I learned about being a curator. My first job was as a research associate, and then I was hired as an assistant  curator at my present gallery. When the position of curator became available, I was promoted and have enjoyed my work ever since!